45,000-litre fuel tanker overturns on Lagos road

A tanker loaded with 45,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) overturned on Ijako Road, inward Oke Oso, along the Ajah Expressway in Epe, Lagos State, on Friday.

The incident, which occurred while the Mack tanker was climbing Ijako Hill, was reportedly triggered by a mechanical fault that caused the vehicle to lose momentum and topple onto its side.

The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) said it received an emergency alert about the accident at 11:32am and deployed its Whales Team from the Epe Base to the scene.

The responders arrived four minutes after being dispatched and found that one of the tanker’s compartments was leaking fuel.

According to the agency, preliminary findings showed that the tanker’s propeller had detached from its joint, resulting in the loss of momentum that caused the vehicle to overturn.

There were no reported deaths or injuries from the incident.

The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service had commenced containment efforts before LASEMA arrived, with the aim of preventing a fire outbreak and limiting the risk of environmental contamination.

LASEMA said the response was being coordinated through the Incident Command System, with personnel from several agencies deployed to secure the area.

Those involved included LASEMA, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps and representatives of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers.

The agency said traffic was being controlled to protect motorists and prevent a secondary accident while emergency operations continued.

An empty tanker was subsequently mobilised to transfer the petroleum product from the overturned vehicle before the damaged tanker could be recovered.

“An empty tanker has been mobilized for the safe transloading of the product, after which recovery of the fallen truck will commence,” LASEMA said.

The agency’s Permanent Secretary, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, commended the emergency responders for their swift intervention and coordinated handling of the incident.

He said the state government remained committed to protecting lives and property through proactive emergency response and disaster risk reduction measures.

Motorists were advised to cooperate with traffic officials and stay away from the immediate area to allow emergency personnel to complete the operation.

LASEMA said further information would be released as the recovery effort progresses, while residents were reminded to use the emergency numbers 112 or 767 when urgent assistance is required.